Jeff Bezos’ ex-wife MacKenzie Scott is giving away much of her whopping $640 million in charity to extreme left-wing causes, including pro-LGBTQ and illegal migrant funds.
Through her philanthropic company Yield Giving, Scott, 53, has allocated the funds to nonprofits who responded to an open call for applications.
She became one of the world’s richest women when she divorced Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2019 and walked away with $28.9 billion.
In a note on her website, she thanked the evaluators for ‘their roles in creating this pathway to support for people working to improve access to foundational resources in their communities’, adding: ‘They are vital agents of change.’
An analysis of how she spent over half a billion dollars shows that at least half of that money tilts in one direction.
Jeff Bezos ‘ ex-wife MacKenzie Scott is giving away much of her whopping $640 million in charity to extreme left-wing causes, including pro-LGBTQ and illegal migrant funds
Amid the biggest catastrophe at the US border in decades, Scott has given $122 million to funds supporting illegal migrants
Most glaringly, amid the biggest catastrophe at the US border in decades, Scott has given $122 million to funds supporting illegal migrants.
The Florida Immigrant Coalition, Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition and Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project are just a few of the groups getting Scott’s largesse.
Florida Immigrant Coalition is notable because of their frequent attempts to tear-down the state’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis and GOP-controlled legislature, according to WPTV.
The group slammed a bill DeSantis signed calling for stiffer penalties to those who break migration laws already in place a choice to ‘kick people when they’re down.’
They have also slammed his border control efforts as turning Florida ‘into a truly draconian state where residents live in fear of a government who overreaches into every corner of their lives, including their businesses and places of worship.’
Another $117 million was gifted to at least 67 so-called ‘prisoner advocacy groups.’
The Innocence Project, Art For Justice Fund, Anti-Recidivism Coalition, North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services all got cut a check as part of the pledge.
Perhaps most controversially, $18 million of the $72 million earmarked for LGBTQ causes goes to funds that help out transgender athletes amid a culture war over preserving sports for biological women.
Through her philanthropic company Yield Giving, Scott, 53, has allocated the funds to nonprofits who responded to an open call for applications
Perhaps most controversially, $18 million of the $72 million earmarked for LGBTQ causes goes to funds that help out transgender athletes amid a culture war over preserving sports for biological women
Transgender Law Center, ACLU of Alabama, Soccer without Borders and OutFront Minnesota are all examples of these funds.
Another group called Gender Justice – who say their goal is ‘building and sustaining a world free of gender barriers requires community organization, education, and changing the ways we talk and think about gender’ – got $2 million.
At least $18 million of Scott’s cash will go out to groups promoting clean energy projects.
In her note on her website, Scott wrote that her evaluators had done ‘outstanding work advancing the voices and opportunities of individuals and families of meager or modest means, and groups who have met with discrimination and other systemic obstacles.’
Scott began giving away billions that year to handpicked organizations. Beneficiaries of the latest $640 million donation however were selected via an open call for applications.
She has now given away more than $16.5billion she received from Bezos, while the Amazon founder who has since moved on with fiancé Lauren Sanchez has given roughly $2billion away.
Some 6,353 small nonprofits applied for the $1 million grants when applications opened.
‘In light of the incredible work of these organizations, as judged by their peers and external panelists, the donor team decided to expand the awardee pool and the award amount,’ said Lever for Change, which specializes in running philanthropic prize awards.
Florida Immigrant Coalition received a check from Scott and is attempting to tear-down the state’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis and GOP-controlled legislature
Another group called Gender Justice – who say their goal is ‘building and sustaining a world free of gender barriers requires community organization, education, and changing the ways we talk and think about gender’ – received $2 million
Some of Scott’s cash and properties will also go to help the nation’s homeless crisis
Competitions like the open call can help organizations who do not have connections with a specific funder get considered, said Renee Karibi-Whyte, senior vice president, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.
‘One of the best things about prize philanthropy is that it surfaces people and organizations and institutions that otherwise wouldn´t have access to the people in the power centers and the funding,’ she said.
Her organization also advises funders who run competitive grants or philanthropic prize competitions to phase the application to diminish the burden of applying on any organization that is eliminated early.
The 279 nonprofits that received top scores from an external review panel were awarded $2 million, while 82 organizations in a second tier received $1 million each.
The ‘open call’ asked for applications from nonprofits who are community-led with missions ‘to advance the voices and opportunities of individuals and families of meager or modest means,’ Yield Giving said on its website. Only nonprofits with annual budgets between $1 and $5 million were eligible to apply.
‘In a world teeming with potential and talent, the Open Call has given us an opportunity to identify, uplift, and empower transformative organizations that often remain unseen,’ Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change, said in a statement.
The awardees were selected through a multilayer process, where applicants scored fellow applicants and then the top organizations were reviewed by a panel of outside experts.
Scott has given away $16.5 billion from the fortune she came into after divorcing Bezos, 60.
With gifts totaling $16.5billion, Scott has given about eight times as much in the last two years than her ex, Jeff Bezos (left) has in his entire life despite his pledge to donate $13 billion
Her giving includes donating her $55 million Beverly Hills estate to a charity that will use a large portion of the proceeds to house the homeless and go toward an immigrant integration program
Bezos, 60, has since moved on with his new fiancée, Lauren Sanchez, 54
Initially, she publicized the gifts in online blog posts, sometimes naming the organizations and sometimes not. She launched a database of her giving in December 2022, under the name Yield Giving.
In an essay reflecting on the website, she wrote: ‘Information from other people – other givers, my team, the nonprofit teams I´ve been giving to – has been enormously helpful to me. If more information about these gifts can be helpful to anyone, I want to share it.’
Since her split with Bezos, she has devoted much of her time and energy to identifying the most worthy and effective charitable organizations to donate her cash to.
This includes donating her $55 million Beverly Hills estate to a charity that will use a large portion of the proceeds to house the homeless and go toward an immigrant integration program.
Meanwhile, in November 2023, Bezos announced that he will be giving $118 million to nonprofit groups supporting families experiencing homelessness.